notable edibles Nicey Treat offers cool lick on a stick
Closing the beer-and-beef cycle Sometimes a beer and a burger are the perfect combo for a warm summer night out on the patio. So what happens when the burger is the beer? That’s the general idea behind a partnership between Sun King Brewing and a small family farm up in Thorntown. Beer Barrel Beef raises its pharmaceutical-free cattle on shady pastures for direct-to-consumer sales. But along with being pasture-raised, these lucky cows get to munch on Sun King’s mash—the stuff left over after the brewing process.
Jeff Patrick sells popsicles with a smile. Photo by Helen Workman. Cool customers are keeping their eyes peeled for Nicey Treat, one of Indy’s newest mobile food operations. This isn’t any old truck: Owner Jeff Patrick peddles—and pedals—his frozen fruit and dairy pops with a bike-pulled freezer cart. Nicey Treat is the first foray into food service for Patrick, a videographer by trade. He says making freezer pops from wholesome ingredients (organic and locally sourced whenever possible) seemed a natural fit. “My grandfather was in the dairy business in Seymour, and when my brothers and I would go visit him, the first thing we’d always do was raid his freezer for fudgsicles, popsicles and creamsicles,” Patrick says.
Two to three times a week, farm owner Judi Thomas-Sheerer heads to Sun King to pick up the mash and deliver beef. And the cycle continues. “We call it cow candy,” Thomas-Sheerer says. “Our girls love it, and it helps them have lots of rich milk to feed their calves.” The beer mash adds something delicious to the beef, ThomasSheerer says. Sun King wins, too. “We try for the most sustainable practices possible here,” says owner Clay Robinson. “The ability for spent grain to be utilized by local farmers is fantastic.” Find Beer Barrel Beef on Facebook and localharvest.org. Details: 8511 N. 200 W., Thorntown; 765-516-2194.
—Chris Collins
When Patrick was in Mexico a few years ago, a taste of paletas (icy fruit pops) brought those childhood memories flooding back, and the inspiration for Nicey Treat was born. Patrick has put a modern stamp on the traditional popsicles of his youth with his own creative flavor combinations like strawberry mint, blueberry buttermilk, pineapple basil, creamy avocado, not-so-hot chocolate and the Arnie P. (a blend of lemonade and black tea). Patrick’s all set to sell pops at summertime events like Zoobilation, and also hopes to make regular appearances in White River State Park. Check niceytreat.com or Twitter (@niceytreat) for an up-todate schedule and locations.
—Amy Lynch
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edible indy
Summer 2012
